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"I’ve learned a long time ago that PTSD is something that you just carry with you for the rest of your life, but to an extent I’m comfortable with that, because I know that having the knowledge that I do, having seen the things that I have seen… Like, I'm one of the people who has the duty of carrying on the memories of those who lost their lives and who carries on the rage and the pain and the sorrow associated with that. And not only like carries that around, but uses it to make sure that things like this...don’t happen again."
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"One of the things that keeps...that I keep thinking about, were, you know, one of the Chancellor's statements shortly after, it might have been the next day, May 1 or so...Recognizing what had happened and recognizing that it was sort of the darkest day in our university's history, but also saying that it would not define us. It's something that we can't forget, won't forget, should not forget, but it also should not define... It's a piece of our history but it should not be our entire story."
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"I just think I've grown up a lot and matured a lot because of this, and I really know what it's like to go through something very, very difficult. I didn't have that experience. Nothing about my life was very difficult before this. So although it's a terrible thing to happen it has been a really good life lesson, just in terms of dealing with the unthinkable...I feel like it benefits me in a lot of ways, it's just obviously terrible that it ever had to happen."
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"Adversity, and I believe this, I don't believe adversity builds character. You hear that all the time, 'Adversity builds character.' I think it reveals character. I think that's when you find out how people are wired, how they're made up, how they act and react in stressful, difficult circumstances and in spades I think this campus did very well...Some things that most of us might have taken for granted in the past, we don't quite so much in this aftermath. I think we're a little more prone to say 'thank you', a little more prone to say 'I appreciate that work', a little more prone to say 'how you feeling', and those little things are very important in how people feel about where it is they spend most of their waking hours."
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"We won't forget those students that were involved, we won't forget Kennedy, we won't forget the classroom. That day literally has impacted Niner Nation in a way that many institutions fortunately have not experienced. And so, that was like the main takeaway that we won't let this define us. However, we won't be silenced and we won't let those students go in vain."
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"We remember our classmates and colleagues every single day. We don't get to take a day off to stop thinking about it. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about it. That I don't think about, you know, Emily and Sean and Drew and Rami and Reed and Riley. So, we don't need a day of remembrance, every day is a day of remembrance for us."
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"But really what struck me is the resiliency of these students and their ability to come back to UNC Charlotte and to come back into spaces to heal with each other and to be there for each other. That was really just the human spirit just was beautiful, absolutely beautiful...I want us to learn from what happened. I want us to be a better community and I want us to not forget. I don't want us to be in pain over it, but I want us to remember that you know there are pieces of this community that are special and resilient and that we lost two members of our campus community to this tragedy, and I want to figure out a way for us to connect that to generations of future 49ers."
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Photograph of memorial at miner statue
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Baseball cap worn by the 49ers baseball team after the shooting; inscribed with the initials of the victims and Charlotte Strong
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Video of dance choreographed and performed by UNC Charlotte students
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White poster with green, blue, pink and gold paint that reads "49ers Stand together" with hearts and 49er miner pick logo
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White poster with blue, green, and gold paint that reads "Niner Strong" with 49er miner pick logo
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Blue poster with green construction paper letter that reads "We Are Strong" with two UNCC logos
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White poster with green writing "#CLT STRONG" with crown and heart
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Poem titled "April 30th", by anonymous author
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Flowers and candles on memorial at Kennedy building
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People standing in front of memorial at Kennedy building
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Photograph of remembrance stones displayed at UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens
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Photograph of remembrance stones displayed at UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens
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Photograph of a sign hung ouside of the Union, made by the UNC Charlotte Women's Rugby team
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Photograph of "Charlotte Strong' message left on the whiteboard wall on Atkins Area 49
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Photograph of notes left on Niner Times newspaper box on campus
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Photograph of lighters and note at Kennedy memorial
